Progressive Democrats Sonoma County
Press Release
May 16, 2011
Santa Rosa, CA – Members of Progressive Democrats of America have been petitioning congressional members to enact a jobs bill that will help the millions of unemployed workers across the country. Progressive Democrats, Sonoma County chapter is pleased to see Representative Lynn Woolsey’s announcement that she is cosponsoring H.R. 870, the Humphrey-Hawkins 21st Century Full Employment and Training Act, introduced by Representative John Conyers, Jr., D (MI-14) in the House of Representatives on March 2, 2011. As of today, there are a total of 15 cosponsors, all Democratic Congress members.
The Humphrey-Hawkins 21st Century Full Employment & Training Act is a comprehensive and innovative federal and local government job creation and training bill. As the bill’s author noted, “The Act aims to provide a job to any American that seeks work and to, ultimately, create a full employment society.” The Act’s Full Employment Trust Fund would provide federal funding for local community-based job creation and training initiatives until full employment is reached in the United States. The Act is deficit neutral and it is fully funded through a securities transaction fee of .25% that is paid by the trading facility in which the transaction occurs.
Rep. Woolsey had this to say about the bill in a letter she sent to constituents concerned about Congress’s lack of focus on job creation:
In today’s turbulent economic times, people are struggling to find and keep jobs, pay their bills, stay in their homes, and ensure they have ample savings for their retirement. That’s why I’m a cosponsor of H.R. 870, the Humphrey-Hawkins 21st Century Full Employment & Training Act. This bill would establish a comprehensive and innovative federal and local government job creation and training program that would create millions of job opportunities for the nation’s unemployed. Under this legislation, the Department of Labor would work collaboratively with local and state governments, non-profits, and the private sector to fund community based jobs such as, renovating housing and schools, weatherizing homes, fixing our aging infrastructure, and neighborhood beautification projects.
Sonoma County’s official unemployment rate is an unacceptable 10.4%, or 26,500 workers as of March 2011. If those 26,500 people stood in one continuous line, that line would stretch from Santa Rosa to Rohnert Park. The impacts of extended unemployment cannot be overstated – from individual loss of income and health care benefits to home foreclosures to increasing demand on our fragile social safety nets and devastating state budgets. Now that Wall Street has recovered with the help of Main Street, it is time for Wall Street to help Main Street recover.
Progressive Democrats of America will continue to work with our legislators to focus their attention on the urgent need for more and better jobs in the US and make job creation their number one priority now. We urge all members of Congress to quickly pass this legislation for the benefit of the American people and our economy.
PDA also supports and advocates for The People’s Budget, written by the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Fair Trade, fair taxation legislation, single payer healthcare, withdrawing troops from Afghanistan and Iraq, and protecting vital and popular Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid programs.
H.R. 870 can be viewed and downloaded from http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-112hr870ih/pdf/BILLS-112hr870ih.pdf .
Progressive Democrats Sonoma County is the Sonoma County chapter of Progressive Democrats of America, a grassroots PAC that works both inside the Democratic Party and outside the party, in movements for peace and justice. PDA’s advisory board includes seven members of Congress and activist leaders such as Tom Hayden, Rep Raul Grijalva, Thom Hartmann, Jim Hightower, and Rep. John Conyers. More info: www.pdsonoma.org and http://pdamerica.org
